Sentinel wins Colorado Press Association awards

The awards were announced Saturday at the association’s annual awards banquet in Denver.

The Western Slope’s largest newspaper also took five second-place honors and four third-place awards, including two photography awards in the same category.

The Sentinel competed in the midsize daily newspaper category, which includes newspapers with circulation between 15,000 and 75,000. It includes such newspapers as the Greeley Tribune, the Pueblo Chieftain and the Fort Collins Coloradoan.

The Sentinel’s first-place winners were Mike Wiggins for best news story, Steve Beauregard for best humorous column, Mike Boger for best advertising campaign and the classified advertising staff for best classified ad pages.

Sentinel Publisher Jay Seaton said the awards demonstrate the commitment the paper’s staff tries to show every day to produce the best product it can.

“We’re enormously proud of the staff we have here, not just in the newsroom, but in advertising as well as the rest of the operation,” Seaton said. “It’s a total effort that has led to these awards.”

Second-place honors went to Dave Haynes for best headline writing, Dean Humphrey for best sports photograph, Robert Garcia for best informational graphic, the advertising staff for advertising layout and design and Mike Erskine for best circulation promotion.

Third-place winners were Bob Silbernagel for best editorial writing, Kathy Jordan for best serious column, Humphrey for best sports photograph, and Jeff Kuhn and Greg Campbell for best use of color in an ad.

Additionally, Sentinel photographer William Woody won first place for best news photo and best photo essay for work he did last year at the Montrose Daily Press, which competes against daily newspapers with circulations under 7,500. Woody also shared in a first-place writing award for best series.

Woody, who joined The Sentinel late last year, also won two awards Friday from the Colorado Associated Press Editors and Reporters annual contest. He received first place for best photo essay and second place for best spot news photo for work at the Daily Press.